New Delhi: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has registered a case under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and the Anti-Hijacking Act in connection with the 30 September attack on Indian pilot Captain Smit Machchhar by an Omani first officer aboard Flydubai Flight 1073.
According to the FIR, a copy of which is with ThePrint, the Omani first officer allegedly stabbed Captain Machchhar mid flight in an apparent attempt to hijack the aircraft or cause it to crash. The attack left the Indian pilot with deep cuts to his head and hands.
Explaining the basis for the NIA taking up the case despite the incident occurring outside India’s territorial jurisdiction, the FIR states that the central government is of the “opinion that a scheduled offence under the National Investigation Agency Act, 2008 has been committed and the case is related to attack on an Indian national Pilot Captain Smit Machchhar with an apparent attempt to hijack or crash the plane FlyDubai Flight”.
Citing the gravity of the offence, its serious national and international ramifications and the need to uncover a possible larger conspiracy, the central government concluded that the case required a “thorough investigation by the National Investigation Agency”, the FIR says.
The FIR states that the central government received information that a Flydubai flight departed from Dubai on 30 September at 7.05 am, carrying 174 passengers and six crew members. The aircraft reportedly descended rapidly and turned back into Saudi airspace while flying near the Jordan-Saudi Arabia border at around 9.21 am (GST).
“Passengers reported that the first officer stabbed captain Smit Machchhar during the flight in an apparent attempt to hijack or crash the plane but was overwhelmed and restrained by passengers and crew. However, Captain Smit Machchhar sustained deep cuts to the head and hands as a result of the attack,” the FIR states.
“FlyDubai pilots on board then landed the plane safely at Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Airport in Tabuk, in northwestern Saudi Arabia at 10.45 am (GST) leading to the arrest of the first officer by Saudi authorities,” it adds.
The FIR further states that the information discloses the commission of offences against Indian national Captain Smit Machchhar under the Anti-Hijacking Act, 2016, and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967. These are scheduled offences under the National Investigation Agency Act, 2008.
(Edited by Viny Mishra)
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